Lomandra longifolia

Mat Rush

Other names: Long-leaf Mat-Rush
Family: Lomandraceae or Xanthorrhoeaceae
Habitat: Very common in a wide range of habitats
Uses: Edible starch in the leaf bases, raw or cooked. Edible flowers. Leaves used for fibre
Season: All year
References: Low, Robinson

A large, tufted harb with tough strap-like leaves usually about 50cm long. The flowers were eaten by Aboriginies, with a taste like fresh green peas. The white leaf bases can be chewed to release starch. The strong, fibrous leaves were used to make net bags. This is a very common plant in Sydney and the Blue Mountains. It is native, and commonly found in the bush, and also widely used as a cultivated plant in both private and commercial gardens.

Photo: Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains NSW

Photo: Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains NSW

I made the drawing below as part of the Kamana Naturalist Training Program. It is not meant to be artistic or even particuluarly technically correct. The main purpose of drawing in the course is that it is a great aid to learning the identifying details of what you are drawing.

Photo: Kamana Naturalist Training Program. High Resolution (2402 x 1276)

Close-up of the mat-rush leaf.

Leaves, close up.

Vein structure in the leaf is visible.

Drawing of the end of the leaf from Kamana. The colours are not quite exact but that was the closest I could find in my pencil set.

Bush Tucker Plant Foods - Leaves
Bush Tucker Plant Foods Index
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